In his first interview about rehiring Thomas, Dolan tells HBO’s “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel” in a segment scheduled to air Tuesday night that “I think I’ve always understood him.”

“I don’t know if I can explain it other than that there’s something inside of both of us that’s really quite similar: the tenacity, the stubbornness,” Dolan adds. “Isiah’s a guy who doesn’t believe in his limitations, and I’m a guy who doesn’t believe in his limitations.”

The Knicks didn’t win a single playoff game during Thomas’ stint as team president from December 2003 to April 2008 despite regularly owning the NBA’s highest payroll. Thomas also went 56-108 in two seasons as their coach before being fired.

Of picking Thomas to run the Liberty, Dolan says: “I didn’t think I would get a better person to do that job than him. He would draw attention to the team.”